34 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. [Jan., 



Right here I will put in another suggestion. When Mr. 

 Hale was speaking about certain rocky sections where he 

 was clearing out the brush and getting the land ready to 

 plant with apple trees. I have discovered that you have an 

 apple tree in a place where you have cut off wood, where be- 

 fore you would find nothing but a miserable looking apple 

 tree sprout, when you cut the timber then it will grow- 

 vigorously; another thing, it will bear vigorously, and bear 

 good apples. That's right along in line with what Mr. Hale 

 said. Another thing, you will never see any San Jose scale 

 or any kind of insects there. Every apple will be clean and 

 smooth and bright. It is a question with me whether there 

 isn't something for us to utilize, whether we cannot put apple 

 trees on these denuded forest lands, and secure some nice 

 fruit. 



Mr. HOYT. What is worth doing at all is worth doing 

 well. You can get good fruit anywhere if you put the trees 

 out and take care of them. You have got to take care of 

 anything that you put out if you expect to get good results. 



Secretary GOLD. My experience in tree planting began 

 about seventy-five years ago, and I have continued it from 

 that time to the present with various degrees of success. This 

 theory of our president's was very attractive to me. The idea 

 that our virgin land had been despoiled of its fertility I did 

 not believe. I had an idea that if an orchard was set out in 

 that way that insects would not be encouraged. That what was 

 wanted was to bring back fruit culture here in Connecticut to 

 the same profusion which we were told our fathers and grand- 

 fathers enjoyed before us. About sixty years ago I tried this 

 experiment: I took an acre of ground of good strong forest 

 growth, and as good as I had anywhere, cut it over clean, en- 

 closed it with a strong fence to keep out all animals, and pro- 

 ceeded to plant it with a selection of fruit trees, plums, apples, 

 and other trees. I hid them away in the forest where the 

 insects could not get at them, as I supposed, and I fondly 



